San Antonio Express-NewsLocal leaders moved quickly Friday to distance themselves from homophobic comments made by Councilwoman Elisa Chan, while local and national LGBT advocacy groups and politicians called for her immediate resignation.

Mayor Julián Castro said Chan's comments — secretly recorded in May and released this week amid ongoing debates about updating the city's nondiscrimination ordinance to protect sexual orientation and gender identity — illuminate a “level of bias and ignorance that's astonishing.”

And in Washington, the Human Rights Campaign called for the third-term incumbent to leave office.

“My initial reaction was that I was shocked by what I was hearing. My second reaction was that it gives the wrong impression of San Antonio when people outside our city hear it,” he said. “It was also astounding how misinformed and downright ignorant a lot of that conversation was.”

Stevens agrees that it's “politically incorrect in some circles” to claim that people choose to be gay.

“The newspaper will get to you,” he warns.

“That's why I never would say that outside because they kill me,” Chan says. “When I say that it's ... behavioral preference, they say that, 'No, you're born with it.' But I never bought into that.”

An aide suggests that homosexuality could be linked to biology: “Americans can, with almost a 90 percent success rate, identify gay people by their face alone,” he says.

“No, that's because they shave,” Chan said. “And I also think they could take hormone shots.”

The conversation shifts to the possibility of Chan submitting an Op-Ed, presumably to the San Antonio Express-News, regarding her stance on the nondiscrimination ordinance.

“Become a culture warrior on this one,” advises Jeff Bazan, who was Chan's chief of policy at the time of the recording. Bazan now works as chief of staff to District 8 Councilman Ron Nirenberg.

(Earlier in the recording, Bazan warns, “The road we're going ... incest and being able to marry animals, that's all going to happen,” echoing red-meat Republicans such as Rick Santorum.

(Late Thursday, Bazan gave a statement: “I was basically explaining the viewpoint that some people have on the gay marriage issue. What I said was wrong and I deeply regret it. I can say that those comments, which were intended to be purely political, do not reflect my heart. Councilman Nirenberg, whom I currently serve and support, has made it clear that discrimination is not negotiable, and I am proud to work for him.”)

“You get the most political points by standing up for traditional values on this one,” Bazan continues in the recording. “This is not an economic argument. This isn't a small government argument. This is a social, cultural argument right here and ... you're going to score the biggest points by taking that stand.”

But Chan seems to reject that strategy, opting instead to cloud the issue and conceal her views.

“This is my philosophy, guys,” she says. “Whatever you want to do in your bedroom is none of my business, but do not impose your view on other people, especially becoming policy ... because personally, I think it's just disgusting just to even think about. All the definitions. ...

“But I don't want to go against, necessarily ... I don't want to beat up anybody,” she continues. “Maybe what we can do, can we maybe throw some questionable confusions like, OK, this 'transgender,' because the definition is so broad... Maybe I say I was not educated on what transgender is about.”

Later, Chan slips back into candor.

“By the way, this is politically incorrect,” she tells her aides. “I don't think homosexual people should do adoption. They should be banned by adoption. You're going to confuse those kids. They should be banned.

“If you wanted to choose that lifestyle, we don't want to discriminate you, but you shouldn't affect the young people,” she continues. “How terrible. ... They're going to be confused. You see two men go into a bedroom. You see two women kissing. Is that not confusing? It's confusing.

“It is actually, what you call, suggestive, for the kids to be corrupt, which is against nature. I'm telling you, anything that is against nature is not right.”

None of this intolerance, of course, should appear in the Op-Ed.

“Can you guys come up with a draft?” she asks her aides. “Come up with draft with all the good, those arguments we talk as a speaking point, in terms of we're addressing an issue that is not an issue. This is national politics again at the council level.

“This is another layer of bureaucracy, that we have not heard any discrimination,” she continues. “And then add in the family value in there. ... Maybe I'll use the industries, that we have a trend, that is, maybe I'll use we have water rates and CPS rates to worry about.”

Above all, Chan says, she does not want to be seen as disdainful of people's “choices.”

“We do not want to attack any group,” she says. “I'm respectful of their choices, right? Even though I don't believe that, but they're free people, they can do whatever they want to do. But ... don't just come back and say you're being discriminated.”

(fne1'si) I think the following embedded code requires browser with shockwave to view vid. otherwise can view on above web page per day's post)

@about 6:10 "Americans can with almost a 90% success rate identify gay people by their face alone which implies there are some biological traits..."

"no no, that's because of shape..."

laughter

"No, that's because of muscles in the face, but again, that's a subconscious thing."

So according to the San Antonio City Council, instead of doing a normal heterosexual duck face, gay people, 90% of the time, walk around with dick sucking face.

Well, I have heard only good things about living in San Antonio. And now you can tell who sucks dick just by looking. That place gets better by the minutes, though not so inviting by their council minutes. Fuck them.